AI Project Reveals Argentina’s Missing Children

Written By: Aisha Hussain
Last Updated On: September 4, 2023

The inspirational AI project in Argentina is being run by Argentine publicist Santiago Barros. In order to generate photos of the missing children from the military dictatorship era as adults, this program uses advanced artificial intelligence. An Instagram account named “iabuelas,” which combines “artificial intelligence” (AI) with “grandmothers,” posts these moving digital representations as a tribute to the Grandmothers of Plaza de Mayo’s tireless efforts to reunite these missing youngsters with their families.

Children were forcibly taken from their homes during Argentina’s military dictatorship, causing severe pain. Using a customized computer application, Santiago Barros combines images of absent parents from the Grandmothers’ database to generate portraits of what his hypothetical adult children may look like. The critical DNA-based identification job done by the Grandmothers is supplemented but not replaced by this AI effort. Instead, it acts as an emotional reminder and spreads awareness, especially among people over 46 who are unsure of their ancestry. The Grandmothers’ mission to reunite more families continues despite the fact that 133 of their grandkids have been found through DNA research.